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Eric Dickerson's advice to Cowboys: Don't fear 400 carry mark, keep giving DeMarco Murray the ball!
Twenty-eight years ago, then-Los Angeles Rams coach John Robinson asked his future Hall of Fame running back if he could handle 30 carries in a game.
Eric Dickerson couldn't say yes fast enough.
And when the 1986 season opener was over, Dickerson had done even more: 38 carries for 193 yards and two touchdowns. All that was left was to answer Robinson's next question.
"He asked me, 'Well, do you think you can do it again?'" Dickerson recounted with a laugh.
You can tell that Dickerson likes telling that story. In his mind, it's a good illustration of what his NFL era was like. It was tough, challenging – in both good and bad ways. So you can understand why he takes a different view of Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray than the rest of us. As it stands, Murray is on pace for a mind-numbing 424 carries this season, which would set the league's single-season rushing attempts mark, eight more than what Larry Johnson did in 2006.
But Dickerson – the league's all-time single-season rushing leader – says this is all a breath of fresh air. Much to the contrary of popular hand-wringing.
"He's wearing the right number to do it," the Hall of Famer said with a laugh, noting his numerical kinship with Murray's No. 29. "… It comes down to the player, if he wants to carry it that much. That's his job if they give it to him 45 times."
In this more health-conscientious era of the NFL (or what some veterans call the "softer" era), that's almost an unthinkable stance. Sure, Murray is off to a captivating start. He's on track to break the 2,000-yard rushing mark. He's only the second NFL player in history to rush for at least 100 yards in the first six games of a season (the other is Jim Brown).
Yet, with concussions and the general knowledge of the pounding players take, it's hard to look at Murray and not cringe. From a professional standpoint, he's in a contract year and running straight into a bank. But from a medical standpoint, there's a safe plummeting toward him from the bank's second-floor window.
The Cowboys aren't exactly refuting that. Just last week, team owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jason Garrett were both fretting about Murray's workload. It should be dialed back, they said. Others should get involved in the running scheme – this was the memorandum.
Of course, this was before Sunday's statement against the Seattle Seahawks, when that same memorandum went into a fourth-quarter paper shredder. Murray finished with 35 total touches Sunday, including handling the ball a whopping 11 of the final 14 plays by Dallas (including two nullified by penalty). That put Murray on pace for 480 total touches this season, which would be the second-highest total in NFL history. And all this after Murray has already missed games with knee and ankle injuries in each of the past three seasons.
All of which looks bad for Murray. But hang with Dickerson for a second. He's speaking from experience. He thinks that, health permitting, players in this era can still thrive with a 400-carry season mixed into their resume. While popular opinion trends in the other direction, Dickerson suggests it doesn't have to be a career-ending event.
Dickerson holds himself out as proof. He ran the ball 404 times in 1986 – one of only five players to eclipse the 400-carry mark in a single season. The others were Johnson with the Kansas City Chiefs, the Atlanta Falcons' Jamal Anderson (410), the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' James Wilder (407) and the Tennessee Titans' Eddie George (403).
Dickerson's season, much like Murray's now, was a marriage of need, health and willingness. He finished with 431 total touches (404 rushing, 26 receiving and one pass) and propelled the Rams into the playoffs despite a mediocre offense that didn't field another Pro Bowl-caliber player that season.
But he carried the team because that was what was expected. And he did it without physical perfection, too.
"I wasn't healthy the whole year," he said. "You're never healthy. You can't be."
Indeed, he wore a makeshift splint on a bad toe that plagued him his entire career. But Dickerson would point out the 404 carries didn't end him. He finished with 1,821 rushing yards that season, and notched three more 1,000-yard seasons after that, until age and a terrible Indianapolis Colts team wore him down.
All of which undercuts the 400-mark myth. Of the five players who topped the mark, only Johnson never managed another 1,000-yard season. And while both Anderson and Johnson were undone by injuries that quickly ended their careers following their 400-carry seasons, it's worth noting that poor offensive lines constructed around them expedited the process.
Dickerson says that while he agrees safety has to be a primary precaution for Murray going forward, history doesn't. He's a firm believer that even in a passing cycle, championship teams need a dominant running back more often than not. And if Murray is willing to carry that load, he should be allowed to.
"The big question is how DeMarco Murray feels," Dickerson said. "That's what it comes down to."
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/eric-dickerson-s-advice-to-cowboys--don-t-fear-400-carry-mark--keep-giving-demarco-murray-the-ball-191334645.html;_ylt=AwrBJR8Gx0BU5igAo1lNbK5_
Twenty-eight years ago, then-Los Angeles Rams coach John Robinson asked his future Hall of Fame running back if he could handle 30 carries in a game.
Eric Dickerson couldn't say yes fast enough.
And when the 1986 season opener was over, Dickerson had done even more: 38 carries for 193 yards and two touchdowns. All that was left was to answer Robinson's next question.
"He asked me, 'Well, do you think you can do it again?'" Dickerson recounted with a laugh.
You can tell that Dickerson likes telling that story. In his mind, it's a good illustration of what his NFL era was like. It was tough, challenging – in both good and bad ways. So you can understand why he takes a different view of Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray than the rest of us. As it stands, Murray is on pace for a mind-numbing 424 carries this season, which would set the league's single-season rushing attempts mark, eight more than what Larry Johnson did in 2006.
But Dickerson – the league's all-time single-season rushing leader – says this is all a breath of fresh air. Much to the contrary of popular hand-wringing.
"He's wearing the right number to do it," the Hall of Famer said with a laugh, noting his numerical kinship with Murray's No. 29. "… It comes down to the player, if he wants to carry it that much. That's his job if they give it to him 45 times."
In this more health-conscientious era of the NFL (or what some veterans call the "softer" era), that's almost an unthinkable stance. Sure, Murray is off to a captivating start. He's on track to break the 2,000-yard rushing mark. He's only the second NFL player in history to rush for at least 100 yards in the first six games of a season (the other is Jim Brown).
Yet, with concussions and the general knowledge of the pounding players take, it's hard to look at Murray and not cringe. From a professional standpoint, he's in a contract year and running straight into a bank. But from a medical standpoint, there's a safe plummeting toward him from the bank's second-floor window.
The Cowboys aren't exactly refuting that. Just last week, team owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jason Garrett were both fretting about Murray's workload. It should be dialed back, they said. Others should get involved in the running scheme – this was the memorandum.
Of course, this was before Sunday's statement against the Seattle Seahawks, when that same memorandum went into a fourth-quarter paper shredder. Murray finished with 35 total touches Sunday, including handling the ball a whopping 11 of the final 14 plays by Dallas (including two nullified by penalty). That put Murray on pace for 480 total touches this season, which would be the second-highest total in NFL history. And all this after Murray has already missed games with knee and ankle injuries in each of the past three seasons.
All of which looks bad for Murray. But hang with Dickerson for a second. He's speaking from experience. He thinks that, health permitting, players in this era can still thrive with a 400-carry season mixed into their resume. While popular opinion trends in the other direction, Dickerson suggests it doesn't have to be a career-ending event.
Dickerson holds himself out as proof. He ran the ball 404 times in 1986 – one of only five players to eclipse the 400-carry mark in a single season. The others were Johnson with the Kansas City Chiefs, the Atlanta Falcons' Jamal Anderson (410), the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' James Wilder (407) and the Tennessee Titans' Eddie George (403).
Dickerson's season, much like Murray's now, was a marriage of need, health and willingness. He finished with 431 total touches (404 rushing, 26 receiving and one pass) and propelled the Rams into the playoffs despite a mediocre offense that didn't field another Pro Bowl-caliber player that season.
But he carried the team because that was what was expected. And he did it without physical perfection, too.
"I wasn't healthy the whole year," he said. "You're never healthy. You can't be."
Indeed, he wore a makeshift splint on a bad toe that plagued him his entire career. But Dickerson would point out the 404 carries didn't end him. He finished with 1,821 rushing yards that season, and notched three more 1,000-yard seasons after that, until age and a terrible Indianapolis Colts team wore him down.
All of which undercuts the 400-mark myth. Of the five players who topped the mark, only Johnson never managed another 1,000-yard season. And while both Anderson and Johnson were undone by injuries that quickly ended their careers following their 400-carry seasons, it's worth noting that poor offensive lines constructed around them expedited the process.
Dickerson says that while he agrees safety has to be a primary precaution for Murray going forward, history doesn't. He's a firm believer that even in a passing cycle, championship teams need a dominant running back more often than not. And if Murray is willing to carry that load, he should be allowed to.
"The big question is how DeMarco Murray feels," Dickerson said. "That's what it comes down to."
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/eric-dickerson-s-advice-to-cowboys--don-t-fear-400-carry-mark--keep-giving-demarco-murray-the-ball-191334645.html;_ylt=AwrBJR8Gx0BU5igAo1lNbK5_
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